FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (WSVN) - Crews in Fort Lauderdale Beach have completed repairs on an underground water main break amid concerns of aging infrastructure.
City of Fort Lauderdale officials said the break occurred near 100 South Birch Road at around 9 p.m., Sunday.
Monday morning, 7SkyForce HD flew over the scene where workers could be seen with shovels and operating heavy equipment around a large hole in the ground, as water flowed onto the roadway.
Crews are responding to a water main break at 100 S. Birch Rd on Fort Lauderdale Beach. Properties in the area are experiencing low pressure and service interruptions. Traffic is being detoured around the affected area via Cortez Street and Poinsettia Street. pic.twitter.com/sTOaDRouGW
— City of Fort Lauderdale (@FTLCityNews) February 3, 2020
Police have shut down the north and southbound lanes of Birch Road surrounding the break.
Area residents woke up to discover they had no water service.
“My friends in the building down here don’t have water. My friends in this building don’t have water. Here we are,” said resident Mark Van Rees.
City officials said residents in the area of the break are experiencing low water pressure and service interruptions.
“Very inconvenient today, actually, because of the fresh water and washing bathroom facilities are delayed, at least through the day today,” said another resident.
Crews were able to keep the break isolated.
Fortunately, this was not a sewer line like the ones that have been breaking across East Fort Lauderdale over the past two months.
“I think a lot of residents are extremely worried about what’s going to be happening here in the future,” said Van Rees.
City officials said they are fast tracking millions of dollars to replace the aging pipes.
“Infrastructure is certainly a challenge for the City of Fort Lauderdale, as it is for a lot of cities throughout the country,” said Fort Lauderdale spokesperson Chaz Adams. “We’re certainly doing everything we can to improve and upgrade our infrastructure.”
Meanwhile, residents continue to wait for crews to complete repairs to the ruptured water main.
“We didn’t have water through the night, and they said it’ll be another six or eight hours,” said an area resident, “so hopefully, by the end of the day, we’ll be back in business.”
Monday afternoon, crews capped the leak and worked on restoring water service to two nearby buildings. Late Monday night, officials confirmed water service has been restored.
A precautionary boil water notice remains in effect for the area. It includes residents living to the south of Castillo Street, to the west of South Atlantic Boulevard and to the north of Cortez Street. Residents living north of Poinsettia Street and to the west of Seabreeze Boulevard are also under the advisory.
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